Exclusive: UK campaigners say it is ‘unacceptable’ no nature assessments were made on bee-killing Cruiser SB
The Conservative government did not carry out a legally required assessment of how green-lighting the use of a banned pesticide, described as a “death blow to wildlife”, would affect some of the most important nature sites, documents have revealed.
The previous government gave emergency approval this year for sugar beet farmers to use Cruiser SB for the fourth year in a row.
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
07/24/2024 - 05:12
07/24/2024 - 05:00
The US and the UK among countries with low dependence on fossil fuels criticized for ‘hypocrisy’ on climate pledges
A surge in new oil and gas production in 2024 threatens to unleash nearly 12bn tonnes of planet-heating emissions, with the world’s wealthiest countries – such as the US and the UK – leading a stampede of fossil fuel expansion in spite of their climate commitments, new data shared exclusively with the Guardian reveals.
The new oil and gas field licences forecast to be awarded across the world this year are on track to generate the highest level of emissions since those issued in 2018, as heatwaves, wildfires, drought and floods cause death and destruction globally, according to analysis of industry data by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD).
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07/24/2024 - 04:00
Black soldier flies could help cut planet-warming methane produced when organic waste breaks down, Macquarie University team says
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A team of Australian scientists is genetically engineering a common fly species so that it can eat more of humanity’s organic waste while producing ingredients for making everything from lubricants and biofuels to high-grade animal feeds.
Black soldier flies are already being used commercially to consume organic waste, including food waste, but tweaking their genetics could widen the range of waste their larvae consume while, in the process, producing fatty compounds and enzymes.
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07/24/2024 - 04:00
Reptile’s teeth found to have covering that helps keep serrated edges razor sharp and resistant to wear
With their huge size, venomous bite and the fantastical connotations of their name, Komodo dragons seem like the stuff of legend.
Now, that status has been elevated further: scientists have discovered that their teeth are coated with a layer of iron that helps keep their serrated edges razor sharp.
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07/24/2024 - 01:39
An American contestant on Race to Survive has apologised for eating a weka, a large, brown flightless bird known for its curiosity
Things got a little too real on the reality TV show Race to Survive when one of the contestants killed and ate a protected New Zealand bird species, prompting a warning from authorities.
The contestants had been warned that certain food groups – including protected ones – were off limits. Spencer Jones, who killed and ate the weka, has since apologised, saying, “I made a mistake. It was shortsighted, it was foolish,” according to the website RealityTea.com.
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07/24/2024 - 00:43
Video posted online shows people running away to escape the explosion at Biscuit Basin, which is now closed to visitors
A surprise hydrothermal explosion in Yellowstone national park has sent sightseers running for safety, after steam and dark-coloured rock and dirt shot up high into the sky.
The eruption happened around 10am local time on Tuesday in Biscuit Basin, a collection of hot springs a couple miles north of the famous Old Faithful Geyser.
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07/23/2024 - 22:30
Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists estimates $7.3bn a year for 30 years could avoid most extinctions, repair soils and restore rivers
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Saving Australia’s threatened wildlife, repairing degraded land and restoring ailing river systems is possible and would cost just 0.3% of Australia’s GDP, according to a new blueprint produced by more than 60 experts.
For the first time scientists, governance and business leaders have produced a dollar estimate of what it would take to fix Australia’s environment.
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07/23/2024 - 18:01
Two new AgustaWestland AW139s will be in use this year as total annual travel bill rises from £3.9m to £4.2m
The royal family spent more than £1m on journeys by helicopter last year, and will take delivery of two new ones to replace those they have used for the past 15 years.
In total, royals made 170 helicopter journeys, costing a total of £1,096,300, official accounts reveal, with the total travel bill last year rising to £4.2m from £3.9m.
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07/23/2024 - 13:38
Latest research shows how illegal drug consumption by humans is harming marine life
Wild sharks off the coast of Brazil have tested positive for cocaine, according to new study by Brazilian scientists, in the latest research to demonstrate how illegal drug consumption by humans is harming marine life.
According to a study entitled Cocaine Shark and published in the journal Science of the Total Environment, scientists dissected the bodies of 13 sharpnose sharks (Rhizoprionodon lalandii) caught in fishermen’s nets off a beach in Rio de Janeiro.
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07/23/2024 - 12:24
Allies of the 73-year-old anti-whaling activist Paul Watson have said that prison time would amount to a ‘life sentence’
The arrest of the anti-whaling activist Paul Watson in Greenland – where he could face extradition to Japan – has been condemned as “politically motivated” by supporters, who compared the case to the detention of the WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange.
“The parallels are disturbing,” said Omar Todd, chief executive and co-founder of the Captain Paul Watson Foundation (CPWF).
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